In call to Xi, France's Macron warns of escalation in trade tensions

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron told his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in a telephone call that it was vital to avoid an escalation in tensions on international trade which would be harmful to all sides, his office said on Thursday.

“The president ... stressed the importance of avoiding the rise of trade tensions which would be detrimental to all, while at the same time correcting, in a multilateral framework, the practices likely to create imbalances, in accordance with the commitments made in the framework of the G20,” the president’s office said in a statement after the call.